A motley group of travelers meet at a London inn on their way to Canterbury, where they agree to take part in a storytelling competition. Peter Ackroyd's translation and adaption is magnificent!
The first message sent to Tom Thorne's phone was just a picture - the blurred image of a man's face, but Thorne had seen enough dead bodies to know that the man was no longer alive. But who was he? Who sent the photograph? And why? While the technical experts attempt to trace the sender, Thorne searches the bulletins for a reported death that matches the photograph. Then another picture arrives.